For a couple returning to
New York City, designer William Sofield conjures an atmosphere of
restrained glamour, amplified by soothing textures and gleaming accents

Master Bedroom - A New York City Apartment Designed by William Sofield

Master Bedroom - A New York City Apartment Designed by William Sofield

All love stories unfold according to the same familiar rules. So do I-love-New-York stories. In the classic tale, you have a mad-hot affair with Manhattan in your 20s—wild nights, poetic mornings, fabulous people, brilliant cultural events. Then you flee to the suburbs and buy a house with a yard, having decided that the city is not a marriage-and-family type of town. But you never forget it.

When William Sofield met the couple whose apartment he would ultimately spend the next two years designing, they were on the cusp of reuniting with the city they’d left behind. “We had made a commitment to each other that when our kids went to college, we’d return,” says the husband. When the time came, “We ran back.”

Says Sofield, “I identified with their whole situation. Like: ‘We were young and owned the town, and then we moved out and bought the proverbial butter churn.’ This was coming back to their former selves.”

In the living room of a Manhattan apartment designed by William Sofield, the sofas and shagreen cocktail table are custom made; the ottomans are from Irwin Feld Design, and the 1970s pagoda lamps and ’30s silver-gilt and parchment mirrors are French. Produced by Anita Sarsidi; Photography by Simon Upton

Living Room

Living Room

The living room mantel of cast glass backed with white gold is custom made, the chandelier is of Murano glass, and American barrel-back chairs flank a metal-and-glass table by Donald Deskey; the sconces are antique, and the mantel clock belonged to designer Madeleine Castaing.